Love, Life and Rational Polyamory

Tag Archives: Dating

Girl One: My sweet long distance friend who has always made me a little giddy, from the first time I read her writing, and eventually was able to spend time with in person. (That sounds a little stalkerish when I put it like that, but it’s been a fantastic friendship.) Special Man and I are heading to Seattle for a real mini-vacation next week, and I can’t wait to see her and talk and laugh and actually be in each other’s personal space…and the thought of getting to cuddle and smooch and see where that may lead, makes me smile every single day.

Girl Two: A sparkly girl who took me by surprise and I found myself daydreaming about what it might be like to date a girl. How it might feel to be romantically and emotionaly invloved with a woman. Then an interesting thing happened…She and Special Man Friend started to chat and she and her partner and SMF and CC did a few things together, and now tonight, he’s out on a date with my sparkly little girl crush. I was mad for a few minutes. Okay, I was mad for a few days. I felt like he had stolen her or something. I’m not mad any more, and I feel kind of silly about it, but I’m not daydreaming about her anymore.

Girl Three: This is more complicated. She and her partner are fun, friendly and just downright nice. She is smart and honest and I just want to kiss her face off. He is funny and fun and thinks I’m pretty. I have had some frank and awkward conversations with each of them individually, trying to sort through their wants, and their agreements and boundaries with each other. I don’t.want to play by any rules that I wasn’t part of creating. I’m not a unicorn. I also don’t want to get vested and then get hurt. Even as I say that, I realize that there is no guarantee, no matter who I date or become attached to. And, I’m already vested. I really like both of them.

Yet, I am starting to date two individuals who are partnered. And it’s completely new and scary. It’s scary for me, and it’s added a layer of uncertainty with Special Man Friend. I think he’s happy when I am happy, I really do. But he is nervous, I believe.

Our Poly Network continues to grow. We planned a night out to celebrate our 200th member, and by the time the night rolled around we were at 240. In Boise. It’s what I’ve wanted for such a long time. Community is such an amazing resource.

CC and Special Man Friend were in Texas for a funeral on the day of our celebration, and it just happened to be SMF’s birthday as well. It was a fun night, though I did miss him. I felt comfortable and I felt happy. I connected with friends, and I met some new faces. I kissed a girl in the restroom. I kissed another girl on the balcony. I was consensually groped by a friend, very sweetly. I gave a friend a ride home, and fooled around a little with him too.

SMF worries that I have more fun when he isn’t around, because I’m being stifled by him. At least this is what I think he is saying. Honestly I think that when we are together, we are TOGETHER, and it’s everyone else who is stifled. People were more flirty and more forward, which really doesn’t happen when I’m holding Special Man’s hand, as we are often together in the poly community. It seems so obvious, but I really hadn’t thought about it like that before. It was fun to be on my own.

I think that makes him feel bad, but I also know that he knows what that feels like, to enjoy the lightness and excitement of new people or connections, because we’ve talked about exactly that before. I think I’ve got an internal push and pull going…I almost feel as if I should apologize for having a good time withough him, when he had to be at a funeral on his birthday because his wife’s uncle passed away.

I know this is an emotional impulse. We both know that being open to others, and choosing our experiences, is important and valuable to us.

We ate steak, at 4:15 in the afternoon, two days before Valentine’s Day. When you’re polyamorous, you have to be flexible; creative. It only bothers me on Christmas, this holiday flexibility, but even then, not as much as in the beginning of my experience with polyamory. I gave him a stack of books, individually wrapped, chosen on a late afternoon trip to the bookstore. I wandered the aisles, running my hand along the spines, pausing on the shelves that held stories about things that he loved. I chose a book about puppies. A novel with a deep sea fishing theme. A coffee table book that showcased Idaho, a compilation of cult movie classics. A hardbound book all about wind and weather, with beautiful pictures and scientific explanations.

It felt good, to know someone that well. It didn’t feel boring, or old. It felt comfortable and stable. I had tickets to a showing of “Say Anything” at The Egyptian on that night, the night that wasn’t Valentine’s Day. I planned ahead, I wanted to do something fun.

I didn’t print the tickets soon enough, technology kind of screwed me. We missed the movie.

We ended up having an intense conversation about our functioning parameters as a poly contellation…about comfort levels, and discretion. Special Man asked me if I wanted things to be different.

I said yes.

We are more compartmentalized than I would ideally like to be. It’s just what we developed into over the years. Early on, there were many struggles, things between CC and myself that I never expected we could come back from. We have a comfortable relationship now, which still feels a little…polite. We are both cautious with each other, and I feel an underlying tentativeness when we are all three together. While it is not distressing, it is there. Still, there is an comfortable ease that is not unfriendly.

Do I wish it was different? Yes. And that was hard for SMF to hear, and understand.

Polyamory is hard. That doesn’t mean it’s not also good. I think he gets that. I hope he gets that.

Later that night, we stopped by a bar where our local poly group was getting together for karaoke. Montana was there alone, and as I watched Special Man Friend talking with her, I realized that this compartmentalization has been the norm so long that I haven’t had enough exposure to seeing him at ease and enjoying another partner. I felt a little awkward and out of place.

I flew to Atlanta, presented two classes at Atlanta Poly Weekend, and flew home. I did not get lost, I did not miss any flights. I navigated an entire three days of high level social interaction, on my own. I knew a handful of people, and that made a huge difference. My friend Amul was very much my saving grace, and I hope he knows it. He picked me up from the airport, and delivered me to the conference hotel, even though he had plans that night with other friends. He graciously extended an open invitation to me to join them, but I needed to prepare for my classes, and some alone time in a hotel room sounded perfect.

I forgot a few important things, first, my camera, which was disappointing because I love doing portraits, and a poly con would be an awesome place for some divine people shots. And the second thing I forgot, was my hair product. Now, don’t laugh. A curly haired girl in Atlanta with no hair product… I almost cried! But I learned a wonderful thing.

Nobody cares. I had a great time, and my curly hair did too…

I met a new friend, who was interesting and funny, and ended up talking me through using the public transportation system in Atlanta to get myself to the airport for my return flight. It seems silly, I mean I function in my every day life as a competent single woman, with all sorts of responsibilities and things I’m in charge of, but I was amazingly overwhelmed in Atlanta. I’m truly a small town girl, and I didn’t even realize it until I wasn’t in the small town for a few days.

I led an amazing discussion on polyamory and mental health. It was so very well received, and I am positive I got as much out of it as I put into it. Such wonderful and self aware people and the discussion was just fantastic.

My cute new friend attended my solo poly discussion and stood out as very well spoken and thoughtful in his contributions to the conversation. He sent me a text a few days ago, saying he was looking forward to reading my blog write up about the weekend… He needs a name, so I’m naming him Texas. Not particularly original, but it suits him.

I wish I had a hot and heavy encounter in an elevator to write about, but the truth is I fell asleep on his shoulder my last night in Atlanta, in the middle of a story he was telling me, and he gathered me and my things up and walked me back to the room I was sharing with Amul. I’m shy and he’s younger than me, and he’s very pretty. The next day he made sure I made it onto the MARTA so I could make my flight home, and I found myself wishing I had another day to hang out and hear the rest of his story.

I have two potential dating partners here, not counting Special Man Friend, but I’m stuck or something. I feel a little whiny and worn out, like a three year old who needs a nap. “But I don’t wanna get to know new people. I don’t WANNA date.”

Except that I really do want additional connections, and dating and newness, and everything that goes along with it, is the process. I see SMF, and how energized he gets with new potential connections, and honestly I’m envious of the enjoyment he gets out of that great unknown. Where he gets excited, I get a stomach ache.

I like having relationships. I like connection, and intimacy, and comfortably “fitting” with another person in some way. This includes my children, my work friends, my sisters, not just romantic relationships.

On my OkCupid profile, which really should be rewritten at some point, I say that I “hate” first dates. This is probably an understatement. I also say that I’d just like to be teleported into Date Three, and that would be just fine, thank you very much. Unfortunately, nobody has found a way to do that for me yet. Both the Hippie and the Reporter kind of dance around me, saying hello, making small talk, confusing the hell out of me. I told my sweet friend Amy this week, that I’m not in any mood to spoon feed Reporter my awesomeness.

I was sort of kidding. But mostly not.

I’m too old for this. I want sincere, honest, open people who know what they want. I don’t want to make small talk forever! Tell me what you want. You want a casual twice a month lunch and afternoon sex date? Let’s negotiate. You want a lust filled, mad love affair? Let’s talk. You want to explore a deep emotional connection? Tell me more. Do you want a chat buddy? Meh.

I can’t sleep. Special Man Friend is asleep upstairs, in my bed. I feel so far away from him, but I can’t tell him that. He’s got his own demons, and he’s holding them very close to the vest. (What an interesting phrase that is…)

I don’t know what to do or say. I want to make him talk. He’s told me in the past, that when he gets like this, which isn’t very often, that he just needs me to be okay on my own, and not take it personally that he’s shut me out.

I hate it.

My mind goes everywhere. I know that he is spread so thin, that something is going to have to go, soon. I’m afraid it’s going to be his emotional well-being. My deepest fear is that it’s going to be me.

I’m not perfect. But I work really hard to be a good partner.

Mrs. A read my whole blog. It didn’t go over well.

How do I write and continue to grow in my poly if I’m gagged? This has been my place for self expression. I don’t have anyone to talk to, except SMF and CC, and there’s issues with being completely open with each of them, because of their relationship to each other. I’ve gotten the feeling lately that I’ve over shared with CC, and that puts her in a strange position. We both have issues surrounding Mrs. A, but peeling away the layers of that situation is proving to be difficult. Yes. I would have some processing and adjusting to do with any new girl he started to get close to. That’s the nature of this kind of relationship configuration.

But I have some real and valid concerns. Even if they are only valid to me.

Special Man goes back and forth. He says he respects how I feel, but then I feel that he is impatient and has different expectations.

I have this sick feeling that he just thinks I’m doing bad poly.

But he would be wrong about that.

I told Mrs. A that she should not read my blog if it was going to bother her. I suppose I should tell Special Man Friend the same thing. He and I need to talk, about a lot of things. But he’s asleep and I’m awake. And I don’t know how far away from me he will be when he wakes.

This has been a challenging week. At the beginning of the week, we both said we needed to have a relationship maintenance talk as soon as we could. Between work, and scheduling, last night is the first opportunity we have had to be together, and he was not ready to talk. I can’t go another week.

I was so looking forward to Valentine’s Day this year. I think I want a do-over.

I get the distinct impression that this guy expects (anticipates?) first date sex. He seems nice. He’s smart (I think), sort of funny (hard to say), super enthusiastic (like a lab puppy that I’m not quite sure I have the energy for).

He’s older, educated, used to be a reporter. The Reporter found me on OkCupid; there’s been chatting, not much else. He doesn’t even have my number.

I was also propositioned by two men today, and called a sarcastic bitch by another. All on the lovely internet.

Last night I had a quick dinner with Special Man at Whole Foods. He invited CC along, after her dinner date canceled on her. It was good, comfortable, easy. We’ve earned it. I sat there, very grateful in that moment. We made plans for two weeks out for games and tacos with kids and family.

Some days I wonder if I should just be happy with what I have. Just be fucking happy.